Where did all the flamingos go?
TLDR: Fewer flamingos are showing up at Navi Mumbai's wetlands, and people are worried. Are they finally getting sick of our garbage, or what?
Flamingos, those flamboyant pink residents of our mudflats, are MIA. Bird watchers are noticing dramatically reduced numbers flocking to the usual spots around NRI Complex and TS Chanakya. Is it just us, or is it getting a little too quiet out there?
The usual suspects are being blamed. Construction noise around the DPS Lake area, that never-ending Panvel airport project, and good old pollution are probably driving them away. Remember that “CRZ” notification we were promised would protect these areas? Yeah, us neither.
Environmental groups are, unsurprisingly, not thrilled. They're saying that unchecked development is turning these crucial bird habitats into just another concrete jungle. One activist called it "death by a thousand cuts", which sounds about right.
So, where are they going? Maybe Uran? Are they staging some kind of flamingo protest and forming a pink picket line somewhere? Whatever the reason, fewer flamingos is bad news for Navi Mumbai. Maybe someone should check if Kharghar Hills is hiring flamingo bodyguards.